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Apple Shuts Down iOS App That Helps Find Lost AirPods

Recently Apple pulled a third-party app that helped users locate their AirPods.
“Finder for AirPods” first dropped on the App Store about a week ago and used Bluetooth signal to track down missing headphones, but just a few days later it is gone. Finder for AirPods wanted to help users...

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I love buying things online. Not only is it possible to find almost anything you need and have it shipped directly to your house without having to talk to anybody, wait in line, drive to the store and possibly have the misfortune of having your desired purchase sold out, but you can do it without wearing any pants! The only problem is that you typically don’t get the satisfaction of having it arrive immediately as you would if you had bought it in a store.

However, that isn’t the case if you want to buy a new iPhone. According to the company’s website, after partnering with shipping LTL Canada, if you purchase an iPhone online from Apple, you can receive free next-day shipping! The deal is valid for the iPhone 5, iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S but restricts customers to two phones per order.

Apple already offers free standard shipping on orders that exceed $50, though next-day shipping normally incurs an additional cost depending on the size of your particular order. What makes this deal even sweeter is that individuals who decide to purchase the iPhone 4 may be able to get the phone and have it shipped for free as the phone is already free to users who sign a new two-year contract.

The only thing wrong with this picture is that there is no specific information on the site that indicates when this promotion will end, which means you should probably take advantage of the deal as soon as you are able. Apple has, in the past, offered free next-day shipping along with free expedited shipping, though those offers were around December in order to boost holiday sales numbers.

This might be a way for Apple to try and clear some inventory space as rumors of a cheaper iPhone 5 (possibly the iPhone 5S) continue to circulate. Recent reports on that front state that Apple will be releasing sometime towards the end of June, though Apple has naturally said nothing about such plans.

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Foxconn, Apple’s controversial manufacturer of almost all things with the prefix “i” isn’t producing as many iPhones as Apple wants, nor are they producing them fast enough according to the company’s chairman. Foxconn is arguably the biggest supplier of parts and construction for Apple’s iPhone, iPad, iPod, etc…

According to Foxconn Chief Terry Gou in a recent interview with Reuters, “It’s not easy to make the iPhones. We are falling short of meeting the huge demand.” In addition to that, Gou was unable to say which iPhones are actually difficult to produce as Apple is still currently selling three different models: the iPhone 4, iPhone 4S and iPhone 5.

Despite not revealing the product, it is presumed that Gou was referring to the latest iPhone 5. An unidentified Foxconn official told The Wall Street Journal last month that producing the iPhone 5 is “very complicated”, causing supply issues. The official went on to say that the smartphone is “the most difficult device that Foxconn has ever assembled.”

Apple’s iPhone 5 is thinner and taller than its predecessors and also comes with a few improvements over the 4S, including 4G LTE support and a new, smaller Lightning port. That means that Foxconn’s workers are putting a lot of components into an increasingly smaller shell.

Apple is definitely displeased. The iPhone 5 is scheduled to ship in three to four weeks for people who order it now with customers who are actually going to the store to buy one facing similar wait times. Apple is all about getting its technology into as many hands as possible as fast as possible, so set backs like this are almost inexcusable, especially with other smartphones on the market, like the Galaxy S III, being highly favorable replacements to the iPhone.

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Rumor time! Here on the internet it’s always rumor time, especially if you’re talking about Apple. The newest rumor comes in the form of a new screen size for the unannounced iPhone 5. A recent leaked image of a supposed iPod Touch screen panel has hit the internet, showing an increased screen size for the device.

Macrumors dropped images of white and black front panels that supposedly belong to the next generation of Apple’s iPod Touch. The images show panels that measure the screen at 4.1″ diagonally, a full 0.6″ larger than the last four generations of the device.

It is still unclear as to whether or not these photos are legitimate or not, or whether Macrumors’ source is legit either, though Macrumors has a pretty good track record with their sources and leaks. The site was able to post some pictures of the third-generation iPad panel with specs that matched the final product several weeks before the device was even announced.

What is even more interesting is that these pics come right on the heels of a blog post made on Apple blog 9to5Mac that Apple is testing two new iPhone variants, one of which will include a 3.95″ display. In addition to that, recent claims from The Wall Street Journal, Reuters and Bloomberg state that Apple is planning on increasing the screen size of the next iPhone.

The photos of the screens weren’t the only thing posted by Macrumors. The site also posted pics of what could be the new front and rear camera parts as well as the home button that could all be heading to the next generation of the iPhone.

It is expected that Apple will follow a similar release schedule for the iPhone 5 like it did last year with the iPhone 4S with the release of the new device coming this fall. It is also rumored that Apple will be dropping some hardware updates in the next couple of weeks at its annual developers conference where it will debut retooled versions of the company’s notebooks and a new version of iOS.

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It’s finally happened. Apple has finally been knocked off the number one spot, at least as far as smartphones are concerned. According to recent reports, Samsung saw shipments of smartphones skyrocket over this same time last year, allowing the company to surpass Apple in worldwide mobile phone shipments. At the same time, Nokia saw its share drop significantly.

Samsung’s share in the global mobile phone market increased from 12.2% in the first quarter of 2011 to an astounding 30.6% in the first quarter of 2012. But just because it lost the number one spot doesn’t mean that Apple didn’t increase as well. The Cupertino company saw its share increase from an 18.1% share (2011) to a 24.1% share (2012).

The entire market saw an increase too as overall global smartphone shipments increased 41% annually to total 145 million units in the first quarter of 2012. Apple and Samsung combined to account for over half of that number. According to Executive Director at Strategy Analytics Neil Mawston, “Samsung and Apple are outcompeting most of their major rivals and the smartphone market is at risk of becoming a two-horse race.”

Samsung’s growth is stemming from the company’s very successful Galaxy devices, as well as some other products. “Samsung’s global smartphone shipments rose 253% annually…as demand surged for its popular Galaxy models such as the Note, S2 and Y,” Strategy Analytics noted. Unfortunately, all this good news for Samsung and Apple means bad news for Nokia, who saw its shares drop heavily from 23.5% in the first quarter of 2011 to 8.2% in the first quarter of 2012.

Tom Kang, Director of Strategy Analytics, stated, “This is Nokia’s lowest market share level in the smartphone category since 2002. Nokia’s new Microsoft Lumia portfolio has recently gotten off to an encouraging start in the critical United States market, but shipments there are not yet large enough to offset the firm’s tumbling Symbian volumes in the rest of the world.”

The good news here for Apple is that they manage to remain near the top despite only having two smartphones, the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S, on the market. Samsung, on the other hand, has a lot of different options for customers to choose from, which means that there is a greater chance for people to find a phone that fits them the best. I feel like as soon as the iPhone 5 drops, Apple will be right back on top.

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ChangeWave recently released some new data that revealed that 56% of the people that were polled that plan on buying a smartphone in the next 3 months have decided that they will choose to go with Apple’s newest handheld, the iPhone 4S. This is a 2% increase from the 54% who planned to buy an iPhone 4S in the poll that ChangeWave conducted back in December.

Apple has gained some substantial ground in the last three months while the company’s main rival, Samsung, remained at a constant 13% of consumers who said that they would pick a smartphone from Samsung. Motorola, on the other hand, saw a 1% decrease which drops them to 6%. Third place goes to HTC, which also stayed stagnant at 3% while BlackBerry managed to to increase 3% in the March survey.

The iPhone 4S saw an increase in demand in March when the device was the second-highest share ever tracked by ChangeWave. Consumer demand for the iPhone only saw higher numbers in a poll conducted back in September, just before the device was actually officially announced.

ChangeWave also released a survey back in December that found that the early purchasers of the iPhone 4S were generally happy with their purchase of the device. A total of 96% indicated that they were satsified. The iPhone 4 saw higher numbers with 93% indicating that they were satisfied after they received their device.

Apple’s most successful smartphone to ever launch was the iPhone 4S, which allowed Apple to have a record quarter in the holiday season of 2011. During that three month season, Apple sold an astounding 37 million iPhones with the high-end iPhone 4S being the absolute most popular device.

What say you? Do you have an iPhone 4S? If you do, are you happy with it? Do you plan on buying an iPhone 4S in the next three months or are you holding out for the eventual release of the iPhone 5? I know one thing, if I decide to upgrade to an Apple smartphone, I will be waiting for the iPhone 5. There’s nothing worse than getting a brand new phone only to have the next installment coming out two months later.